The Danish parliament has voted in favour of legalising the operation of supervised consumption rooms.

A majority of Danish MPs have voted in favour of a bill that makes it legal to consume controlled drugs within supervised facilities that the law classifies as “safe drug consumption rooms”. Denmark is the first country to have passed legislation to regulate the operation of such facilities. The decision was supported by 63 MPs, with 43 voting against and one MP abstaining. These safe drug consumption rooms are not only open for drug injectors but allow other forms of use as well, such as smoking, which is less risky than injection.

According to harm reduction activists, consumption rooms have never been illegal in Denmark. “In a constitutional state, what is not specifically illegal, is simply legal,” said Nanna Gotfredsen, the head of Street Lawyers (join them on Facebook!), an NGO which has been advocating for safe consumption rooms for several years. However, the new law puts an ends to any debate as to the legality of such facilities, which will be able to operate with governmental support from 1st July, when the law comes into effect.